Léo Caniaux: "Balancing effort and ego".

The size of the biscotos can sometimes be inversely proportional to the size of the ego. Léo Caniaux, 22, shoulders as broad as his smile, comments humbly on his own results : "I'm French University Champion and that's great, but it's still a baby's results compared to other championships. A fine baby all the same! 145 kg in the bench press, 225 kg in the squat and 252 kg and a half in the deadlift... Heavy stuff, as they say... And above all, a fine French championship title! The fifth of the year for this athletic strength team led by Dominique Sorgato.

"The fear of bubbling

Still little-known in France, athletic strength, often associated with bodybuilding or weightlifting, "consists of repeating three movements with as much weight as possible", explains Léo. For each movement (squat, bench press, deadlift), the athlete has three attempts to lift the weight he or she announces, always with " the fear of bubbling" in other words, " of missing the first attempt, or worse, if you miss all three, you'll be disqualified! It's a sport where you have to balance your effort and your ego.

Passionate about the oval ball since the age of 14, it was through physical preparation that Léo Caniaux discovered his aptitude for athletic strength. Two years ago, this STAPS master's student, who had briefly studied philosophy, left the field to devote himself to cast iron. "It's a fast-growing sport. Every year, the number of members increases and records explode. Léo's only regret is the sometimes suspicious view of the public and other disciplines: "They cry doping every time someone stands out from the crowd."

"Records soar

Strength training is now an integral part of Léo's life. He trains a minimum of four three-hour sessions a week, not to mention rugby, which he has never really put on the back burner since he is in charge of physical preparation for two teams in Nîmes and Lunel. "It's not necessarily easy to reconcile sport and studies, but I enjoy it so much..." he says. A passion he intends to turn into a profession, since after his Master's degree Léo plans to become a sports trainer... And why not for rugby players?

UM sportsmen and women at the top!

The University of Montpellier celebrates its athletes who have won medals at the World, European and French University Championships at an annual ceremony organized by the SUAPS. Read the portraits of these champions who lead the demanding double life of student-athlete. Read all the portraits...